There are many different kinds of color input and color output devices. Examples of color input devices include scanners and digital cameras. Examples of color output devices include printers (e.g., inkjet printers, laser printers, offset printers, etc.) and display devices (e.g., CRT devices, video projectors, etc.).
Because many of these devices can interpret colors differently, device color profiles are often used to enable color information to be accurately shared and reproduced across platforms. A color printer, for example, may make use of a color profile to transform color information into the device's own local color space when printing to a particular target media type. The color profile typically accounts and/or corrects for various characteristics of the color printer as well as the target media type. An example of a standardized color profile format is provided by the International Color Consortium (ICC).
A characterization procedure is typically performed to define a new color profile for a color printer. A typical characterization procedure, as applied to a color printer, may involve the use of a pre-defined “characterization target” that includes a number of different color fields each having a known intended color value. The printer prints the characterization target onto one or more sheets of a target print media type and the color value of each printed color field is measured. These measurements, along with the known intended color value of each color field, are subsequently used to define a new color profile that corrects for the target print media type. The color profile may be subsequently used by the printer to transform color information into the printer's own local color space when printing to the target media type.
Unfortunately, performing a characterization procedure to define a new color profile for a printer and media type combination can be both time consuming and complex.